Conventionally, lever-type connectors and slide-type connectors have been used as a means of reducing the mating force between connectors. Furthermore, connectors in which a low-mating force is obtained by combining a lever and slides are also known. For example, the electrical connector disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 7-192801 is shown in FIG. 7.
This electrical connector 200 has a housing assembly 202 and a housing 204 which mate with each other. A lever 208, which has gears 206, is pivot mounted on pivot pins 210 on the housing assembly 202 so that lever 208 is free to pivot relative thereto. Furthermore, cam grooves 214 on slides 212 are formed in the direction of the length of the housing assembly 202 so that sliding of the slides 212 along housing assembly 212 takes place. Bosses 218 on the housing 204 engage with the cam grooves 214 of the slides 212, and the gears 206 of the lever 208 engage with racks 216 on the slides 212. As a result, the housing assembly 202 and housing 204 can be mated with each other or disconnected from each other when the lever 208 is pivotably moved.
However, in the construction described above, the racks 216 are positioned between two cam grooves 214 in the direction of the length of the slides 212. As a result, the dimensions of the racks 216 are restricted, i. e., the length of the racks 216 is restricted, so that there is a danger that the desired low-operating force of the lever 208 cannot be obtained. Furthermore, if the length of the racks 216 is increased, the size of the slides 212 is increased, so that the overall dimensions of the connector 200 are also increased. If the external dimensions of the connector 200 are limited, there are restrictions on how gradual the inclination of the cam grooves 214 can be, so that there are also limits on how far the mating force can be reduced. Furthermore, since the racks 216 are located between two cams 214, the position of the lever is necessarily determined, so that the degree of freedom in the design of the connector is limited.